Abducted Irish priest Fr. Michael Sinnott spotted three times in the Philippines

Freed: Fr Michael Sinnot who was abducted from his home in the Philippines

Fr. Michael Sinnott, the 78-year-old Irish Catholic priest who was kidnapped in the Philippines on Sunday, has been seen three times.

Bloomberg is reporting that the military in the Philippines are working on closing off the area where the priest is believed to be held captive.

Western Mindanao commander, Major General Ben Dolorfino, refused to say where the priest is being held.

On Sunday, Fr, Sinnott was abducted when six heavily armed men burst into the Columban House, a Catholic convent in Pagadian city, and dragged him into a van in front of his fellow missionaries, according to regional police commander Chief Supt. Angelo Sunglao.

No ransom demands or contact have been made since the abduction. Sinnott, who works with a school for handicapped children, has worked in the Philippines for decades, first arriving in the area in 1957.

Those close to the priest are concerned for his well being after it was revealed that the Irishman recently had bypass surgery and suffers from a heart condition.

It has not yet been confirmed who is responsible for the kidnapping, but some suspect it was Muslim guerrillas, who have been battling for a separate homeland in the southern region of the predominantly Catholic Philippines.

Priests in the region have been kidnapped in the past. Most recently, an Italian priest was abducted by members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front in 2007, though the group has denied any involvement in kidnappings.

Freed: Fr Michael Sinnot who was abducted from his home in the Philippines